Today at THT

I never thought I’d be one of those people, but yesterday as I was driving home from work it occurred to me that I simply can’t listen to any more bad financial news on the radio. It’s just too much and it is starting to depress me greatly. So I clicked off NPR and listened to “Freebird.” It was a good choice. As I was taking in that triple guitar attack, I wondered if that’s how Nats fans feel about the sports broadcast . . .

Brandon Isleib looks at the teams that suffered the most devastating loss of a star, yet still made the playoffs. Weirdest thing: he couches the article in the theme song to “Family Ties.” Unless he’s lying on his Facebook page, Brandon is 23 years-old. Is it really possible for someone that young to know about “Family Ties” for purposes other than mocking it? While we’re on the subject, I’ll throw a question out to the group: which of the women of 1980s Thursday night NBC programming would you like to be with the most: Meredith Baxter-Birney of “Family Ties,” Lisa Bonet form “Cosby,” Shelly Long from “Cheers,” Markie Post from “Night Court,” or Susan Dey from “L.A. Law?” I’m a Markie Post man, myself, but I think reasonable people can disagree on this one.

That’s hardly fair, though Dave: The first Dey era was when she was really, young, and Post’s first era corresponded with the age Dey was in her second.

Of course, I’m willing to take argument on the subject of whether Buck Rogers/Fall Guy Post was a distinct era from Night Court/Heart’s Afire Post.

In other news, this page is going to probably rank pretty high on the list for people Googling “Markie Post.” I would like to apologize in advance for would-be Post-ooglers who are angry that there are no pictures here.

I would say Bonet in a rout. Also, a few years ago I watched several episodes of Family Ties—during my “up to feed the baby years”—and enjoyed it. Yes, that’s right—I liked the show more than 10 years later.

Yes, I had a major thing for Meredith Baxter-Birney back in the day. I remember she was on some sitcom with David Birney, (looked it up: Bridget Loves Bernie), which is where she picked up the second name.

Syndication exists for a reason – to give 23 year-old upstarts/whippersnappers/spring chickens a chance to catch up on pop culture. I saw many episodes of Family Ties on daytime programming as a kid, and I can say with pride that I like the show.

That doesn’t stop the theme song from being one of the most enduring and altogether unsatisfyingg earworms of all time. But what other chance was I going to get to reference Family Ties in a baseball article? Success is just maximizing your opportunities, Craig…‘s all it is.

Success is also a word that Stephanie Tanner tried to spell “rhododendron” in a spelling bee. But that’s the wrong show.